Welcome to the home of the backcountry skiing blog from Off-Piste Magazine. Here we post backcountry ski gear reviews, feature stories and avalanche safety advice, plus ski news, events and more.
Hyperlite Mountain Gear Ice Pack Summer is in full swing here in Hood River, and that means packing as many adventures into the week (or day) as possible. I have been testing the Hyperlite Mountain Gear 2400 Ice Pack for the past couple of months and have attempted to put it through the full gamut of mountain adventures from day… Read More
Fabio Wibmer rides Saalbach Well, bad acting aside, this is pretty crazy. Full-tilt ripping on the mountain bike on snow with a full array of acrobatics. I’m guessing a few of these scenes required multiple takes.
The Loners – Northeast Appeal – Backcountry Skiing in Chic Chocs For those of us in the western states, it’s easy to think the backcountry ski universe revolves around us. Lest we get too self absorbed, here’s a look at some dedicated backcountry riders exploring the Chic Chocs on the Gaspé Peninsula in Quebec. Looks like fun . . …. Read More
Mystery Ranch Patrol 45 Ski Pack The Mystery Ranch Patrol 45 ski pack is a refined piece of history. For those readers old enough to recall the Dana Bomb pack, the Patrol 45 has a familiar air about it. The Bomb pack was the go-to day pack for ski patrol, ski guides and any backcountry skier who appreciated a quality… Read More
Candide Thovex ski film Here’s a new take on skiing or at least sliding on skis . . . I kept waiting for the snow. I guess Thovex is just ahead of his time – he’s ready for the future of climate change and a time when there is no more snow . . . Regardless, it’s impressive.
Snow Shed Topsheet Wax We’ve all been there – breaking trail with a healthy layer of snow on our ski topsheets, cursing the added weight with every step. It does not seem to matter what your ski topsheet material is or it’s texture; given the right conditions, snow builds up and adds weight to every step as you head… Read More
La Liste – Jérémie Heitz redefines steep skiing. Steep skiing evolves yet again – gone are the days of jump turns and mountaineering style descents. Young Swiss skiing phenom, Jérémie Heitz, sets a new bar for fluid freeriding of 45-55-degree ski lines. La Liste follows Heitz in his pursuit to ski 15 of the Alps’ steepest 4,000-meter peaks in just two ski… Read More
The DPS Ski Film Series – Shadow Campaign Volume IV – Episode 4 The DPS ski film crew travels to Kyrgyzstan for the latest ski film in their Shadow Campaign series, Song for the Nomad. The film highlights the Celestial Mountains of Kyrgyzstan as well as the traditional mountain culture all set to an original musical score. Here’s what DPS has… Read More
Patagonia Snowdrifter Softshell Ski Pants If you’ve ever ski toured in a pair of Gore-Tex ski pants, you know how little they really breathe when you’re working hard on the uptrack. Unlike our upper layers, no one changes leg layers while out skiing. Backcountry ski pants require breathability to manage the demands of the skin track. Waterproof and breathable sounds… Read More
Ski Bum Life – Less is more Here’s a quick bit of inspiration for anyone looking to buck the status quo of bigger, better more . . . John Shocklee puts a pretty nice spin on the less-is-more approach to living. May his simplicity inspire a new generation in search of… Read More
Deuter Rise Lite 28 Backcountry Ski Pack Review The rise of the avalanche airbag pack has taken some attention away from traditional backcountry ski packs. Airbag packs are a solid innovation in avalanche safety and have proven to be true life savers, but the reality is that most of us still use regular, non-airbag ski packs for human powered ski… Read More
Voile SuperCharger Ski Review As ski season approaches, we’ve got a few more ski reviews to share. First up is the Voile SuperCharger. It’s a carry-over ski from last season, but it would be crazy to leave the SuperCharger off our list of favorite backcountry powder skis. Voile launched the SuperCharger last season and Off-Piste chose it as one of… Read More
G3 SENDr 112 – Ski Review We have been fans of the G3 Empire for several seasons. It’s lightweight carbon build plus healthy width and rocker combined to deliver a surfy and playful ride in any soft snow conditions. Well, the next evolution is here and it’s a lot of fun, too: the 2018 G3 SENDr 112. The SENDr 112… Read More
Climbing Skin Maintenance and Glue Renewal Climbing skin glue does not last forever. It gets dirty, it gets patchy and it can get gooey. All of these problems leave your climbing skins performing poorly, and there’s nothing like lame skin glue to wreck an otherwise excellent day of skiing. But there are some climbing skin maintenance tips to help you avoid… Read More
As Promised, here’s Episode 1: The Space Within – the first installment of four DPS Cinematic Short Films. And here’s the official word from the DPS team: Exploring the tidepools of a deserted tropical beach, a young boy finds a mysterious treasure washed upon the rocks. ‘The Space Within’ whispers of another world, holding magic unlike anything he has seen… Read More
